40 years of creative technology

40 years of creative technology

I acquired my first computer over forty years ago, the Sinclair ZX Spectrum. It had no hard drive, no monitor, no mouse, and the keyboard was a squishy set of keys in the actual computer casing.   It had just 16k of memory and could only display 8 colours. In...
10 years of sketch a day

10 years of sketch a day

After 10 years of producing a sketch a day, a pastime has become a way of life.   The sketching started as a way of increasing my creative output and a means to build confidence in readiness for becoming a full-time artist. Ten years has flashed by and it’s hard...
Full time artist

Full time artist

I am now a full-time artist. It has only taken me forty years to be able to say that.   Forty years ago almost to the week I set off to art college to earn a degree in Graphic design. I had a vague idea I wanted to be either an illustrator or an animator. In the...
The buzz of being an artist

The buzz of being an artist

A few weeks back I was on holiday in Honfleur, (Northern France). We stayed in a flat in the centre of town which meant it was easy to walk to the market or down to the harbour to do some sketching.  I’m still not comfortable with my plein air expertise so I take the...
Grim calculator

Grim calculator

In 1976, my mother bought me a personal calculator. It was the bog standard, no memory or logarithms. The fanciest thing it offered was the square root option. I had no idea what a square root was, but I could now calculate it. I loved my calculator and in a parallel...
The cost of prints

The cost of prints

Part of my professional career involved find the trust cost and/or savings any project was likely to have. Sometimes the projects were more about softer values like ease of use or accessibility but more commonly is was about increasing productivity and reducing cost....
Sketch a day habit

Sketch a day habit

Back in 2013, I began a project to create a new sketch every day. Initially, I planned to do it for a month to test the waters. However, I quickly found myself extending the project to two months, then eventually to a full year. According to psychologists, after 70...
Working from home and retaining sanity.

Working from home and retaining sanity.

I started working from home 25 years ago, having negotiated a 4-day week with my employer. My first daughter had just been born, and I was determined to spend more time with my family. Back then, I dedicated my 5th day to my creative output, keeping the two worlds...